The candidates for the Hampden District Massachusetts Senate seat: top row, left to right, Republicans Kenneth G. Condon and Robert A. Magovern; bottom row, left to right, Democrats Susan R. Dawson, Ronald R. Patenaude and James T. Welch

Kenneth G. Condon

Position sought: State Senate, Hampden District
Age: 63
Address: West Springfield
Political party: Republican
Occupation: Former CFO Boston University, Former CFO American International College
Education: Tufts University, master’s degree in business administration, Wharton School of Finance, University of Pennsylvania
Experience: No prior elected office

Robert A. Magovern

Position sought: State Senate, Hampden District
Age: 67
Address: 144 Birch Hill Road, Agawam
Political party: Republican
Occupation: President, Neighbor to Neighbor of America, Inc.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Boston University
Experience: Agawam City Council; Member and Region 1 Chairman of the Republican State Committee; Vice Chairman board of trustees Westfield State College

Ronald R. Patenaude

Position sought: State Senate, Hampden District
Age: 54
Address: 1582 Memorial Avenue, 2A, West Springfield
Political party: Democrat
Occupation: President of UAW Local 2322
Education: Attended Springfield Technical Community College, Asnuntuck Community College and Springfield College
Experience: no prior elected office held; appointed by Gov. Deval L. Patrick to Commonwealth Corporation board of directors

James T. Welch

Position sought: State Senate, Hampden District
Age: 34
Address: 270 Christopher Terrace, West Springfield
Political party: Democrat
Occupation: State representative
Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business Management, Westfield State College
Experience: former West Springfield City Councilor, Ward 2; state Representative, 6th Hampden District

What has previously been a relatively sleepy race could heat up as candidates for the the state Senate seat in the Hampden District vow to ramp up their campaigns through fund-raising, mailings, pavement-pounding and other public debates.

In the upcoming primary election, three Democrats and two Republicans will vie for a chance to face off in the general election, with all touting their ideas and experience.

“We’ve been doing a lot of phone-banking and canvassing ... but we’ve been going throughout the district. This is a very diverse area and I don’t think some of my opponents are reaching out to some of the neighborhoods I’ve been spending a lot of time in, like the North End and Maple High sections (in Springfield),” said Ronald R. Patenaude, a labor union president and one of three Democratic candidates running for the seat.

Patenaude’s challengers are Susan R. Dawson, former mayor of Agawam, and state Rep. James T. Welch, D-West Springfield, who has become a protégé of sorts to Buoniconti. Welch, 34, won his state representative seat when Buoniconti made a successful bid for the state Senate in 2004.

Dawson, 46, lost an attempt at a second term as mayor after she was publicly attacked by the estranged wife of the man she is dating; a criminal case and public relations fiasco ensued.

But she says the public has been overwhelmingly supportive since she began campaigning in earnest and holding stand-outs in recent weeks.

“During an hour-and-a-half stand-out on Tuesday, I got three boos. I’m OK with that,” said Dawson, who points to education reform and life sciences job development in the region as her primary platforms.

Dawson concedes the public drama surrounding her personal life cost her the election in Agawam, but it’s old news.

“I think once the woman who attacked me was found guilty, it moved to the rearview mirror for most people. The public was tired of hearing of it,” she said.

Celeste Benoit, 62, of Longmeadow, was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to assault in connection with beating Dawson as she emerged from the women’s bathroom at Max’s Tavern in May of 2009. Dawson had been dating Benoit’s husband of 26 years, Mark Benoit, though he later admitted he had been duplicitous with Dawson about the status of his marriage. However, the damage to her political career had already been done.

Welch, on the other hand, has a squeaky clean image and is counting on his record on constituent services in his district (which overlaps to an extent with the Senate district) to propel him to the general election.

“My legislative experience will be as asset to the voters,” Welch said, who sits on the powerful House Ways and Means spending committee as well as others.

Patenaude said constituents in certain minority neighborhoods are unfamiliar with the sitting senator and his opponents.

“The Democratic Party needs to be more inclusive. They preach something they don’t practice,” he said, adding that he has lobbied for gay rights, workers’ rights and has won endorsements from labor and progressive groups.

On the Republican side, Agawam City Councilor Robert A. Magovern and former university financial executive Kenneth Condon are battling for the GOP spot in the general.

While Condon boasts a sterling resume that includes degrees from the Wharton School and high-level financial jobs at Boston University and American International College, he endured a hiccup soon after he announced his candidacy in March.

Condon, the former chief financial officer at AIC, was fired this spring after college officials were annoyed by his candidacy being made public in the media before they were informed, according to records provided by Condon.

He suggested that he was the victim of a fund-raising snafu attributed to another former college official, but the college president and board members refused to comment.

Beyond that, the West Springfield native said he moved here from Boston, where he worked under former BU Chancellor John Silber for nearly 30 years, and said he has had trouble garnering local support.

“Getting my name out there has been the biggest challenge,” said Condon, who drives around in a BMW sports coupe with his campaign slogan emblazoned across the side for exposure.

He said he had a successful fund-raiser in Boston where he raised nearly $9,000 this summer, and said his extensive background in high-level finance positions could benefit the voters.

“I have decades of experience in big and small business - finance, budgeting, running a large operation .¤.¤. dealing effectively with Phd’s with large egos .¤.¤. that will be valuable especially at this time in this state’s financial history,” he said, adding that he has blanketed the district with mailings in an effort to build a following.

By contrast, Magovern, 67, is the consummate local man with 13 generations of his family growing up in Greater Springfield and a laundry list of local achievements.

Magovern said he favors tax reductions and a return to “common sense government.”

“What I’ve found, quite honestly, is businesses want to stay small and don’t want to grow beyond five or six employees because they don’t want to deal with state regulations - most prominently health insurance,” Magovern said.